UPDATE: This diary entry was written Monday evening — since then Vande Velde’s condition has improved significantly, and he is traveling back to Girona Tuesday afternoon for further examinations.

May 11, 2009:

We just went and visited Christian, rarely have I seen somebody in so much pain, even our attempts to lighten the mood backfired as laughing is about the worst thing he can possibly do. He’s been given loads of painkillers and is still barely able to move from the pain. It’s horrible to see. For the moment two ribs are fractured, but it will be a couple of days till they can see if there’s anything else. It’s always the same after one of these big crashes, the full diagnosis can’t be done for a few days as it takes that long for all the injuries to appear visible on an xray. It is devastating for us as he is such a strong component of the team, and for me in particular as I enjoy so much racing with him and the two of us thrive off each other. Just as I come back, he goes…
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